Moore County Courthouse - Building - #79001738
Posted by: 
PFF
N 35° 20.743 W 079° 25.055
17S E 643794 N 3912532
Quick Description: Fifth county courthouse for Moore County, NC, completed in 1923.
Location: North Carolina, United States
Date Posted: 2/2/2009 3:15:11 AM
Waymark Code: WM5Q9C
Views: 7
Long Description:Moore County was created by a division of Cumberland County in
1784. The first courthouse was a log building, constructed the
following year. It was moved in 1814 to the current "courthouse
square". Two more replacements followed in 1820 and in 1840.
Despite being constructed of brick, the courthouse burned on
September 5th, 1889, and over 100 years of county records were
destroyed, making another building replacement necessary.
Additional physical problems befell the courthouse over the
years, so in 1922, a bond was passed that allowed $150,000 for
construction of the current courthouse. It is constructed entirely
of Indiana Limestone and was completed in 1923.
The main entrance is on the western side. In modern times, the
grounds have been encroached by road widening and barely
accommodate the building's footprint on the south, east and north
sides. This enchroachment caused the loss of the 1898 Magnetic
Meridian Station--a pair of granite markers used by surveyors to
calibrate their compasses. A grassy area has been preserved on the
western side, and two Civil War cannons remain, as does a memorial
to a WWI aviator. However, these articles are very close to the
curb of the street.
A newer courthouse stands across the street on the east side of
Dowd Street. And remembering the disastrous 1889 fire (and to
prevent another loss of records), the Register of Deeds has an
underground storage vault which is dug into the hillside on the
west side of Dowd Street.
The Carthage Historic District extends several blocks to the
west of the courthouse. It contains the one remaining building of
the Buggy Factory, a stone Community House built in 1940, and
several Victorian houses.